The Hawk's Empire
by heavensnote77
Summary: Zoro is the sole survivor of the Roronoa clan. He does not seek revenge for the extermination of his people but he does seek one thing... the title of the world's greatest swordsman. What will Zoro do to defeat this man? He has power, strength, intelligence and worst of all.. he has secrets that not only concern Zoro, but the people of the past he has sworn to forget.
1. Chapter 1

A tantalizing hand beckoned the youth to come forward as the sun rose timidly across the horizon. The misty morning seemed to be carrying the scent of blood all around and the floor was decorated in intricate flower patterns that possessed a design so similar to those of peonies. A young, green haired man stood awkwardly amidst the scene, holding three beautiful katanas.

" Zoro… you disappoint me. Is this what has remained of the Roronoa clan? A measly weakling that can't even defend himself yet alone defend his lineage…. Pitiful indeed".

Zoro remained transfixed to his spot; there is no way he was going to die today. He didn't care about an ancient clan that had died out ages before he was born. He didn't care about the history or carrying out the legacy of an extinct entity. No. All he cared about in this precise instant was HIS legacy, and his alone. He was so close to reaching his goal he was not about to let this bastard become another obstacle to achieve it.

The man took a few steps forward, tightening his grasp against something that was invisible to the naked eye, and yet it could cut anything in a blink of it. Zoro was at his limit, he received a pretty nasty chest wound the first time around and it was oozing blood at an alarming rate.

'I can't hold on for long, if I don't finish this in the next 5 minutes… I'm done for'.

The man opened his mouth, "Maybe I should just kill you…. This world has enough weaklings to allow more of them to roam through this God forsaken place".

God forsaken place,eh? …. That was a nice way to put it… in this instant I'd begun to think how this place was really forsaken by God and by the devil himself.

As he looked into the eyes of the man slowly coming towards him, Zoro in a last desperate attempt, lunged towards the man and tried to cleave him in half. To Zoro's own amusement he noticed how the floor was rapidly coming forward to meet him only to be followed by a painful, sharp, hot sensation in the lower left portion of his abdomen. He had been pierced. More and more blood seeped out of his body as he tried to regain footing. The black haired man watched in gleeful laughs as Zoro slipped and staggered trying to get out of his own puddle of blood.

"**Fuck it to hell**!"…

The man raised an eyebrow….. was Zoro giving up?

"**I will not die here**"….

Guess not …. Ahhh…. This is getting troublesome.

"**DO YOU HEAR -** ".

Zoro flew back as a punch to his left temple clearly connected granting him the numbness to all the pain he has been eager to attain. As he collided against a tree and slowly started losing awareness, he understood that the opponent before him was too strong. If he could not defeat an underling, how can he expect to defeat his lifetime enemy? Blackness surrounded Zoro as these afterthoughts remained…. He gave up his life to a no name in an attempt to defeat the all mighty Dracule Mihawk, bearer of the infamous sword Yoru and title, the world's strongest swordsman.

A ringtone cheerily goes off and the sole man standing picks it up. "Owl.. what are you doing? I told you to report back to me over 2 hours ago".

Owl's eye twitched in annoyance proceeding with a long overdue sigh. "I know..I was just about to call you but I ran into a little annoying worm…..but don't worry it's been taken care of, I'm about to take him out".

Cardinal gruffly asked, "Who is it?"

"It's the Roronoa brat… he just came blazing at me demanding where the Boss was located at. Anyways, I'm going to hang up so I can fin - ".

"Owl… listen very closely.. leave that brat alone. Unless the boss has given out the order to execute him, you must not.. and I repeat…** NOT** kill the Roronoa brat. He was spared for a reason. If you value your life, you'd be wise to follow my orders".

Owl's face color changed from his standard tan to a sickly pale hue. He rushed over to Zoro kneeled down beside the ever more expanding puddle of blood and checked his vitals. Zoro's breathing was very shallow… it was definitely not a good sign. His pulse was weak too and his body was losing warmth by the second. Owl picked up the phone and hung up on the man waiting on the other side of the line. He scooped up Zoro indelicately from the ground, making Zoro groan softly in pain. Owl wanted to get out of the park before people stumbled upon their newly decorated recreational area. He unlocked his black sedan and threw Zoro unceremoniously into the back seat. As he sat down, he looked up a name on his list of contacts and hit the call button.

Beep… beep…. Beep – "Hello?"

"Hey, Streamertail. I need you to help me with a lil something. I'll be at your place in 15".


	2. Chapter 2

"Fucking Owl. Why the bloody fuck does he have to call me at 6 am to cash in favors. He better not bring me any trouble….. or I swear …". Streamertail was slowly sipping his black coffee when a series of hard knocks collided against his front door. As he got up to open it there was an impending feeling of dread that had somehow crept up to him in the last second. Once he opened the door, the dread had dominated and it was etched all across his face. Standing before the doorframe was Owl, one of the three Caporegime's under Mihawk's rule. A man that was both feared and respected in the underworld due to his unyielding power and merciless nature. Owl, which was a codename within the organization, donned a black suit with a baby blue dressing shirt that matched perfectly with his cold irises. He stood at an intimidating 6'4 that went well with his taut body and well rounded shoulders.

"Hey Streamertail… I need you to slap on your doctor abilities and help me out with this kid". Streamertail had a quizzical look, trying to understand what Owl had just said. It wasn't until he followed Owl's sideway glance that he saw a heavily wounded kid strapped onto his shoulder.

"What the – Owl?! Did you kill the kid? Who is he?! Did you use Hansha?! I thought the Boss told you not to use - ".

"Yeah, yeah… it also seems that the Boss wants this kid alive, so if you're done playing Mr. Investigator, switch over to something which you are actually good at. Patch him up". Streamertail shot Owl the coldest glare he could possibly muster and told him, "Follow me".

Zoro was laid on a spare bed that was located in the back part of the house. The room smelled of drugs and antiseptics with surgical utensils and equipment spread out across all four corners.

"Alright Owl, I need you to wait outside. I'll do my best but I can't guarantee anything so don't kill me if this kid decides to kick the bucket. Plus you have a lot of explaining to do so don't leave either". With that, Streamertail closed the door on Owl and he turned to study the current condition of his unexpected patient.

Zoro's chest wound was the least of Streamertail's worries… the tricky part involved the gaping hole in Zoro's left abdominal cavity. He was hoping that Hansha hadn't hit any of his vital organs so that he would only have to worry about his blood loss. As he examined the wound he was relieved to see that the blade had not pierced any of his organs. He just needed a blood transfusion and some rest. While Streamertail was stitching Zoro up he couldn't help but notice a tribal phoenix tattoo that was inked across his left shoulder blade. What concerned streamer tail wasn't the phoenix itself but the blade that was being thrust across another bird… was that a hawk? The doctor's thoughts were cut short as Owl came in through the door.

"If you don't need anything I'll be heading out then. I can see that you will not be done with him for quite some time so I'm leaving. I'm bored, tired and hungry".

"Well I'm sorry to hear that you're bored, clearly you were having the time of your life bullying the kid. Do you know his blood type"?

Owl responded with a roll in his eyes, "No, how the fuck do you expect me to know that"?

Streamer responded with a sigh… "Well, unless I get a blood type this brat isn't coming back. Call up one of your contacts and see if he can tap into that info". Owl pulled out his phone and started calling one of his men.

"Yo, Hopper. I need you to tap into the hospital's data base. Search for Roronoa Zoro's bloodtype".

Streamertail abruptly stopped stitching Zoro's chest wound and slowly turned toward Owl's icy glare. "Call me within the next 5 minutes. It's urgent". As he hung up, Streamertail resumed his healing.

"No wonder you were so desperate to have me tend to this boy. So… its Roronoa Zoro, huh? Owl if this kid had died, you would've perished with him. Have you spoken to Cardinal yet"?

Silence . "You don't have to worry about other shit, just focus on healing the brat".

The cheery ringtone lit up the room, "So, what is it"?

"It's A+ sir. I can send you a couple of liters within the next 20 minutes". Owl looked over to Streamer and asked, "Blood won't come within the next 20 minutes. Can he wait?"

Streamertail continued to stitch the wound, "Yeah but they better prep it and get here fast. His skin color is fading and turning clammy".

Owl responded through the phone, "Hurry it up then and go ahead and send it over to Streamertail's. We'll be waiting". And then he closed his phone.

"So this is the last of the Roronoa's. Never expected to meet one under these circumstances…." Streamertail released the needle he was using to stitch Zoro up and reached out for the bandages.

Zoro faintly started hearing voices…. It wasn't clear but they were definitely there. The pain he was in was excruciating and he couldn't move. He tried opening his eyes but the act itself seemed almost impossible. He tried once again and this time he made it, but the pain that accompanied his full awakening was something he wished he would never experience again. He winced and closed his eyes, hoping that it would all go away but he was wrong. The pain came in waves, tougher and harder than the previous waves before. He couldn't contain the yell that was bubbling to burst through his throat.

"AGHHHhhhhh! SHIT!"….. pant.. pant…. "Eghhhh". As he opened his eyes once more he didn't fail this time around to see that there was a person standing beside him with a syringe in his hand.

"Okay.. calm down. Let me help you… I will take away the pain.. all of it. Just let me help you".

"Stay away from me! Do not touch me…. Stay away!" Zoro tried moving away but his strength had been sapped and he could not deal with any additional pain at the moment. He was frustrated with himself and at how weak he had become. Streamertail looked into the eyes of Zoro and he could not turn a blind eye to the tenacity that these eyes bore onto his own. Camouflaged in these black puddles of nothingness was the ferocious energy of a wild animal that was capable of making a roundtrip to hell in a heartbeat.

"I promise that I won't hurt you, just trust me". As Streamertail nonchalantly said these words, he reached out for Zoro's arm and started injecting the anesthetic. Zoro began to feel the effects of the drug and drifted his gaze further to the left. He locked eyes with the person that was still standing under the doorframe and drew a curse under his breath. It was too late; he couldn't feel his throat or the wounds that decorated his chest at this point. He turned his glare, or what he thought to be a glare, over to his healer. Streamertail adorned his face with a soft smile and said, "Don't worry, you'll be okay".

A gruff voice distracted the healer, "Streamertail, the blood's here".

"Okay, how many liters did they bring in total?"

"They could only find 3 at the moment, hopper said he'll send a couple more my way once it's possible".

Zoro couldn't believe it, how can he be standing there after all that had happened. He didn't want his help. No fucking way. The last thing he felt was the momentary brush of skin as the healer reached out to initiate the transfusion. After that Zoro was engulfed by complete darkness hating every fiber of his being for his weakness. The hawk had never soared so far from the phoenix.


	3. Chapter 3

Zoro felt like he had been sleeping outdoors in the dead of winter as a series of shivers crossed his body. A feeling of great discomfort started to bloom what he would soon realize to be his near death inducing wounds. He was having the battle of his life against himself in which one side chose to continue sleeping while the other obstinately pressured to awaken. As he opened his eyes, it took a couple of seconds for his gaze to adjust and readjust to the lack of light. Once he was in focus he began to look around the foreign room in which he found himself laying in. He saw the surgical light head placed over his body in addition to also noticing that he was lying on something that looked like a bed, but it was too high to categorize it as such. Zoro thought, 'why am I lying on a table'? Next thing he noticed was the washed out wallpaper that had small pirate ships with interspersed Jolly Roger's as decoration.

"I must be in a little boy's room, but what's up with all this medical stuff…. It looks way too cramped and unorthodox to be a hospital".

He tried accessing his memory after the fight but everything was in fragments and hidden by a haze that he couldn't really piece from beginning to end. He tried sitting up but immediately fell back down with a low grunt.

"Hahaha… now I remember… that great son of a bitch had used me as a cutting board, next time I see him, I'll make him pay threefold". Zoro made a second attempt to lift himself off the table, despite his thoracic injuries, he lifted himself to a 90 degree position with less trouble than the first time. Once he was sitting up he observed the work that had been done on him as he was sure that underneath all the heavy bandaging he would find that cursed weapon's handiwork.

Zoro inhaled sharply and exhaled thoroughly as he muttered to himself, "Okay… now onto step 2".

He placed the ball of his foot on the cold ceramic floor. Once he felt that cold surge he wiggled his toes and then allowed his foot to complete its descent. Zoro inched further and further from the edge of the table, the pressure of leaving this unknown place was cornering him into trying out his legs faster. His two feet were on the ground now and the only thing holding him upright was the table. Zoro decided to let go and gave one overwhelming step towards the door, but in that precise moment, his knees gave out and he lost sight of the exit as he crumbled down to the floor along with a kart that carried glass bottles and liquid substances.

"Shit… what's all this crap…"

Sigh….

"I need to find out where I am and how to get out of here, but first, I need to find my katanas".

"No need to worry about them, they are out of harm's way and being taken care of as we speak. You on the other hand don't seem to appreciate the help. You're crawling all over the place not wasting a second thought towards your wounds and how you might re-open those injuries again. Don't become more of a hindrance to me kid, I've got other shit to handle besides taking care of weak, useless brats.

The individual turned the lights on and stood beside the door to overlook the extent of the damage.

Zoro locked the man before him into a glare that screamed murder if it could, he did not recognize the thin, lanky individual that had shoulder length blonde hair. But he immediately thought, 'I can take him down easily'.

Through the corner of his eye, he saw a metallic, sharp object lying close to his left foot so in an attempt to bring the shrapnel within grasping range, he carefully pulled it towards him with his toe, being careful that the movement was in the strangers blind side.

"Don't tell me that you need help, because I won't be handing it out. You were about to execute the great escapade so do us both a favor and take yourself back to that table. You need to rest".

Great, this is his chance, "I really can't get up, my knees can't hold me… I need help". Zoro hated asking for help…but even if he has to swallow his pride for a mere second… he has to go through with it. Friends were expecting him back home and he wasn't willing to disappear without leaving a trace. It took every last bit of self restraint that he thought he would go insane.

He then thought that in order to be more convincing he softened the glare and decided to act the part….

"I don't get paid enough to deal with this shit".

The blonde man strutted over to Zoro and stopped right beside his left side to help him up. The man lowered himself down, took Zoro's left arm and placed it around his neck. To Zoro's relief the skinny man did not realize that he was holding a scalpel in his right hand. As the man helped Zoro onto the table once again, he turned around and began to pick up the scattered utensils and the unbroken bottles. It was then that he noticed a shadow over towering his own that he quickly turned around and evaded the scalpel that was in route towards his face. He grabbed Zoro's arm, disarmed him, brought him closer in range, struck his chest, and spun him around to place him in a chokehold.

Zoro went through a series of mechanisms o release himself from the chokehold but everything he did proved to be useless. He resorted to back kicking his opponent but his efforts were again futile. He continued to struggle against the lock but he was running both out of ideas and air to breathe in.

Streamertail could feel his carotid pulsing fervently against the inside of his arm; he tightened his grip a little bit more hoping that Zoro would give up soon. Once his bloodshot eyes were obvious the lanky blonde spoke, "Okay Mr. Roronoa, I will count up to 5… at that point I want you to relax and settle down. By this I mean to not make any sudden movements or show any aggressive behavior. Do I make myself clear? If I do, tap the floor twice".

The young swordsman frantically looked around the floor for anything to defend himself with. Unfortunately, his attacker had been cautious to corner him into an area where he was out of reach for potential weapons. "Roronoa… tap already… at this rate you're going to suffocate".

Zoro did no such thing. His field of vision started to bubble out in black pieces, bit by bit… his throat burned horribly for air but not as much as his lungs would when his current air supplies emptied out.

"Tch…. Owl! Come in here and help me! Zoro.. I'm serious… I need you to relax but I can't be sure of that unless I gain proof that you understand me! I don't want to hurt you any further!"

"Streamer.. save your breath. This good for nothing is as stubborn as a god damn mule".

That booming voice triggered something in Zoro…. Was this pure hate that he felt? He was knocked out of his thoughts when he felt the vibrations of the man's footsteps approaching him. Because of his awkward pose he couldn't move his neck to look the man in the eye, and this bothered him to no avail.

"Let him go Streamer, I'm here now".

Streamertail let him go as he was told to and got up to walk over to the corner and stand against the wall.

"You're lucky I decided not to end your pathetic life, instead I brought you here so the good doctor over there could heal you up. We went beyond both of our pay grades and wishes to bring you back from old deaths hand".

Zoro's breath had caught up at this point and he slightly straightened his back and arched his neck to stare back at those unnerving deep pools of blue. The man continued, "I will not take any additional payment for the doc's fee… those are on the house". Owl slowly dished out a grin that can only be challenged in face of a mad man.

"However, you will be locked in this room until the doctor deems appropriate for you to go home. Your katanas will not be returned to you until that time. Consider yourself fortunate Roronoa Zoro, if it were up to me you'd be dead in a ditch left out for the wild dogs to tear you to pieces until nothing is left of your miserable self".

Zoro smirked wildly as he uttered these words to Owl, "Something tells me you got in trouble for the little stunt you pulled this morning. Punishment's a bitch right"?

Owl's eyes gleamed with anger and he took another decisive step towards Zoro while his hands swung by his sides, slowly unclenching from a fist into a handling pose.

As he was about to release his form, the doctor yelled out, " !". The overbuilt Capo stopped and regained his cool. He huffed angrily at the swordsmen and stormed out through the door.

"You will remain here until the appointed time", Streamertail said as he followed suit.

The young green haired man had felt the surge of power momentarily… "So he was about to release Hansha?…. He wasn't kidding that it was against their wishes that they had saved me. I wonder why they did it then".

As these puzzling questions were intensely brewing within Zoro's mind, Owl was currently talking to someone through the phone.

"Yes Boss. I understand. Yes, I will be there shortly".

"How is he"?

"According to Streamertail he is expected to make a full recovery, there were no complications".

"Aren't you glad Owl? One little mistake could've cost you your life. This is what happens when one tiny bird thinks it can take the sky as his own. We'll talk about your punishment once you come here. Is Wado Ichimonji in your possession"?

"Yes Boss. What do you want me to do with it"?

"Bring it to me."


End file.
